type / letter
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type
A single character made of metal or wood that is used in traditional letterpress printing. The plural is 'Lettern'.
Im Museum konnte man sehen, wie Gutenberg die einzelnen Lettern zu Wörtern zusammensetzte.
In the museum, you could see how Gutenberg assembled the individual pieces of type into words.
letter
An elevated, outdated, or poetic term for a letter of the alphabet.
Er malte die goldenen Lettern des Namens über die Tür.
He painted the golden letters of the name above the door.
'Die Letter' is not a good equivalent for the English word 'letter'. It never means a letter that you send by mail. The normal German term for a letter of the alphabet is 'der Buchstabe'.
Das Wort „Haus“ hat vier Buchstaben.
The word 'Haus' has four letters.
This meaning refers to the physical printing types made of metal or wood from the era of old-style printing. You find the word in historical texts or in museum contexts.
Der Setzer ordnete die einzelnen Lettern im Setzkasten an.
The typesetter arranged the individual pieces of type in the type case.
This meaning of 'Buchstabe' (letter of the alphabet) is outdated or poetic. Do not use 'Letter' in everyday German; use it only if you want to create an elevated, literary style.
Die alten Lettern auf dem Grabstein waren kaum noch zu entziffern.
The old letters on the gravestone were barely decipherable anymore.
A common poetic phrase is 'in goldenen Lettern' (in golden letters). It is often used metaphorically to express that something is very famous, important, or unforgettable.
Sein Name wird in goldenen Lettern in die Geschichte des Vereins eingehen.
His name will go down in the club's history in golden letters.
letter
Buchstabe and Letter can both refer to a single character of the alphabet. Buchstabe is the neutral term in modern German. Outside traditional printing, Letter, by contrast, sounds elevated, outdated, or poetic and is therefore appropriate only when this linguistic effect is intentional.
In der feierlichen Inschrift ist die letzte Letter kaum noch lesbar.
The last letter in the solemn inscription is barely legible.
Auf dem Schild ist der letzte Buchstabe kaum noch lesbar.
The last letter on the sign is barely legible.
